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Title: Economically dispatching cogeneration facilities

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:269593
 [1]
  1. Community Energy Alternatives Inc., Ridgewood, NJ (United States)

Economic dispatching has been used by utilities to meet the energy demands of their customers for decades. The objective was to first load those units which cost the least to run and slowly increase the loading of more expensive units as the incremental energy price increased. Although this concept worked well for utility based systems where incremental costs rose with peak demand, the independent power producers(IPPs) and the power purchase agreements (PPAs) have drastically changed this notion. Most PPAs structured for the IPP environment have negotiated rates which remain the same during peak periods and base their electrical generation on specific process steam requirements. They also must maintain the required production balance of process steam and electrical load in order to qualify as a Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA) facility. Consequently, economically dispatching Cogeneration facilities becomes an exercise in adhering to contractual guidelines while operating the equipment in the most efficient manner possible for the given condition. How then is it possible to dispatch a Cogeneration facility that maintains the electrical load demand of JFK Airport while satisfying all of its heating and cooling needs? Contractually, Kennedy International Airport Cogen (KIAC) has specific obligations concerning electrical and thermal energy exported to JFK Airport. The facility`s impressive array of heating and cooling apparatuses together with the newly installed cogen fulfilled the airport`s needs by utilizing an endless combination of new and previously installed equipment. Moreover, in order to economically operate the plant a well structured operating curriculum was necessary.

Research Organization:
Electric Power Research Inst. (EPRI), Palo Alto, CA (United States); Encor-America, Inc., Mountain View, CA (United States)
OSTI ID:
269593
Report Number(s):
EPRI-TR-106529; CONF-960524-; TRN: 96:003583-0006
Resource Relation:
Conference: Heat-rate improvement conference, Dallas, TX (United States), 22-24 May 1996; Other Information: PBD: May 1996; Related Information: Is Part Of Proceedings: 1996 heat rate improvement conference; Diaz-Tous, I.A. [ed.] [Encor-America, Inc., Mountain View, CA (United States)]; PB: 568 p.
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English